1. Field of the Invention
The field of the invention relates to a ham product and method for production thereof and, more specifically, to separating a bone-in ham into smaller pieces.
2. Description of the Related Art
Spirally-sliced ham products are popular with consumers, largely because of the convenience of being able to easily remove the pre-sliced ham pieces from the product. A spirally-sliced bone-in ham is produced by slicing it in a manner to form a continuous spiral cut around a centrally-located bone, e.g, a femur bone. Thus, the meat remains substantially connected to the bone such that the spirally-sliced ham remains intact and can be handled and packaged without pieces falling off, folding over, and otherwise deforming. As a result, the consumer decides when to detach the slices from the bone.
It has been recognized that many consumers are hesitant to purchase an entire bone-in ham because there is more meat than the consumer can conveniently consume. As a result, spirally-sliced bone-in hams are commonly sold at retail in half portions. In a conventional method for producing ham portions, the full bone-in ham is cut transversely through a femur bone in order to cut the product into a butt half, which includes the butt end, and a shank half, which includes the shank tip. The butt half includes an aitch bone and part of the femur bone. The shank half includes a shank bone and the remainder of the femur bone. Both the butt half and the shank half are commercially appealing in that only the ends of the femur are visible and the product is not unsightly. The meat remains continuously attached to the bone, so slices are not prone to falling off or becoming deformed during subsequent handling or packaging.
Although spirally-sliced bone-in ham products of this type have been well received, the amount of meat they contain can still be excessive for consumers and smaller occasions where the product is consumed by only a relatively small number of people. Consequently, there is the need to cut spirally-sliced bone-in hams into smaller products in order to allow consumers the option of purchasing a smaller amount of meat.
Additionally, as the size of hogs has increased, a bone-in ham is likely to be larger. A consumer does not have as much of a need for such a large bone-in ham. Moreover, family size has been decreasing. Accordingly, families do not desire as much bone-in ham. And as prices of pork products increase, consumers desire a lower priced product, which will likely correlate directly with the product weight.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,989,607 (“the '607 patent”) to Dieso discloses a ham product that is formed by cutting a spirally-sliced half-ham longitudinally through the bone. The cut can be made by feeding the half-ham through a band saw blade by hand, by pushing a split cart through the blade, or by feeding the product through the blade on a split belt conveyor. Whatever method is used involves aligning the femur with the saw blade so that the femur is cut longitudinally and the meat remains attached to the bone around approximately half of its original circumference. Each half ham is cut transversely into a pair of substantially mirror image products that are each approximately one-fourth of the full ham. Even though the resulting one-fourth ham product is somewhat delicate, the slices remain attached to the bone securely enough to stay intact so that handling and packaging can be carried out in a commercially acceptable manner.
The method in the '607 patent presents some issues with regards to handling and packaging, especially with regards to the corner area of the bone at the intersection between the transverse and longitudinal cuts. The sharp corners of the cut femur bone provide a danger to the handler, packager, and the consumer. As a result, the '607 patent provides packaging to accommodate for the sharp edges. For example, where the sharp corner area of the bone fits into the packaging, a series of cushioning dimples are extruded at the edge of the packaging to pad the bone. With the assistance of the cushioning dimple padding, vacuum packaging can be applied. Alternatively, a folded flap is needed to form a double thickness of material that is able to resist puncturing of the tray. Further, this method of quartering a bone-in ham can result in an unsightly bone segment in every quarter of the bone-in ham.